The Association was founded in 1967 to foster cooperation among the Higher Education Centres in the Caribbean Region.

UNICA is an independent, voluntary organization that gathers the highest rank officials (President, Rector, etc.) of the universities in the Caribbean region. These officials participate in an Annual General Meeting, the supreme authority of the Association, presided over by the President-elect. The Secretary General discharges the daily business of the Association and the Executive Committee meets twice a year.

UNICA promotes projects that bring together institutions and academics from the entire region.

UNICA supports the regionalization of higher education in the Caribbean while acknowledging the forces that reside in the local cultural history, bearing in mind the needs of a multinational, multilingual and multicultural region.

UNICA pre-dated, by more than two decades, the emergence of groupings such as CARIFORUM in 1994 and the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) formed in 1996 and of which UNICA is a ‘social actor’.

UNICA therefore stands as an early example of initiatives designed to unite the region and promote collaboration and partnerships.

UNICA defines the Caribbean as the geographical area comprising islands of the Antilles and Coastal zones of countries surrounding the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico, including Central America and the northern region of South America and the Guianas. The Caribbean is therefore an area of ethnic, cultural and political diversity which facilitates cooperation in a wide range of educational projects.